Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

²And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him,

³Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God,

⁴rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself.

⁵After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.

⁶Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, “Lord, are You washing my feet?”

⁷Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.”

⁸Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”

⁹Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

¹⁰Jesus said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.”

¹¹For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, “You are not all clean.”

¹²So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you?

¹³You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am.

¹⁴If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.

¹⁵For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.

¹⁶Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him.

¹⁷If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

¹⁸“I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen; but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me.’

¹⁹Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He.

²⁰Most assuredly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.”

²¹When Jesus had said these things, He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.”

²²Then the disciples looked at one another, perplexed about whom He spoke.

²³Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.

²⁴Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask who it was of whom He spoke.

²⁵Then, leaning back on Jesus’ breast, he said to Him, “Lord, who is it?”

²⁶Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.” And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.

²⁷Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.”

²⁸But no one at the table knew for what reason He said this to him.

²⁹For some thought, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus had said to him, “Buy those things we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor.

³⁰Having received the piece of bread, he then went out immediately. And it was night.

³¹So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.

³²If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately.

³³Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come,’ so now I say to you.

³⁴A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

³⁵By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

³⁶Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, where are You going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward.”

³⁷Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.”

³⁸Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times.

¹“If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep.

²If the thief is found breaking in, and he is struck so that he dies, there shall be no guilt for his bloodshed.

³If the sun has risen on him, there shall be guilt for his bloodshed. He should make full restitution; if he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.

⁴If the theft is certainly found alive in his hand, whether it is an ox or donkey or sheep, he shall restore double.

⁵“If a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed, and lets loose his animal, and it feeds in another man’s field, he shall make restitution from the best of his own field and the best of his own vineyard.

⁶“If fire breaks out and catches in thorns, so that stacked grain, standing grain, or the field is consumed, he who kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.

⁷“If a man delivers to his neighbor money or articles to keep, and it is stolen out of the man’s house, if the thief is found, he shall pay double.

⁸If the thief is not found, then the master of the house shall be brought to the judges to see whether he has put his hand into his neighbor’s goods.

⁹“For any kind of trespass, whether it concerns an ox, a donkey, a sheep, or clothing, or for any kind of lost thing which another claims to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whomever the judges condemn shall pay double to his neighbor.

¹⁰If a man delivers to his neighbor a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any animal to keep, and it dies, is hurt, or driven away, no one seeing it,

¹¹then an oath of the LORD shall be between them both, that he has not put his hand into his neighbor’s goods; and the owner of it shall accept that, and he shall not make it good.

¹²But if, in fact, it is stolen from him, he shall make restitution to the owner of it.

¹³If it is torn to pieces by a beast, then he shall bring it as evidence, and he shall not make good what was torn.

¹⁴“And if a man borrows anything from his neighbor, and it becomes injured or dies, the owner of it not being with it, he shall surely make it good.

¹⁵If its owner was with it, he shall not make it good; if it was hired, it came for its hire.

¹⁶“If a man entices a virgin who is not betrothed, and lies with her, he shall surely pay the bride-price for her to be his wife.

¹⁷If her father utterly refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money according to the bride-price of virgins.

¹⁸“You shall not permit a sorceress to live.

¹⁹“Whoever lies with an animal shall surely be put to death.

²⁰“He who sacrifices to any god, except to the LORD only, he shall be utterly destroyed.

²¹“You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.

²²“You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child.

²³If you afflict them in any way, and they cry at all to Me, I will surely hear their cry;

²⁴and My wrath will become hot, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.

²⁵“If you lend money to any of My people who are poor among you, you shall not be like a moneylender to him; you shall not charge him interest.

²⁶If you ever take your neighbor’s garment as a pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down.

²⁷For that is his only covering, it is his garment for his skin. What will he sleep in? And it will be that when he cries to Me, I will hear, for I am gracious.

²⁸“You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

²⁹“You shall not delay to offer the first of your ripe produce and your juices. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me.

³⁰Likewise you shall do with your oxen and your sheep. It shall be with its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.

³¹“And you shall be holy men to Me: you shall not eat meat torn by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.

¹Am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?

²If I am not an apostle to others, yet doubtless I am to you. For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.

³My defense to those who examine me is this:

⁴Do we have no right to eat and drink?

⁵Do we have no right to take along a believing wife, as do also the other apostles, the brothers of the Lord, and Cephas?

⁶Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working?

⁷Who ever goes to war at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk of the flock?

⁸Do I say these things as a mere man? Or does not the law say the same also?

⁹For it is written in the law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.” Is it oxen God is concerned about?

¹⁰Or does He say it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written, that he who plows should plow in hope, and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope.

¹¹If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things?

¹²If others are partakers of this right over you, are we not even more? Nevertheless we have not used this right, but endure all things lest we hinder the gospel of Christ.

¹³Do you not know that those who minister the holy things eat of the things of the temple, and those who serve at the altar partake of the offerings of the altar?

¹⁴Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel.

¹⁵But I have used none of these things, nor have I written these things that it should be done so to me; for it would be better for me to die than that anyone should make my boasting void.

¹⁶For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!

¹⁷For if I do this willingly, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a stewardship.

¹⁸What is my reward then? That when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel.

¹⁹For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more;

²⁰and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law;

²¹to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law;

²²to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.

²³Now this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I may be partaker of it with you.

²⁴Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.

²⁵And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.

²⁶Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air.

²⁷But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.

¹Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.

²Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

³And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.

⁴And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

⁵Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.”

⁶And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts.

⁷He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.

⁸But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

⁹Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came to me and talked with me, saying, “Come, I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife.”

¹⁰And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,

¹¹having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.

¹²Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:

¹³three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west.

¹⁴Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

¹⁵And he who talked with me had a gold reed to measure the city, its gates, and its wall.

¹⁶The city is laid out as a square; its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured the city with the reed: twelve thousand furlongs. Its length, breadth, and height are equal.

¹⁷Then he measured its wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

¹⁸The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.

¹⁹The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,

²⁰the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.

²¹The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

²²But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.

²³The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.

²⁴And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it.

²⁵Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there).

²⁶And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it.

²⁷But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

¹Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:

²“Should not the multitude of words be answered? And should a man full of talk be vindicated?

³Should your empty talk make men hold their peace? And when you mock, should no one rebuke you?

⁴For you have said, ‘My doctrine is pure, And I am clean in your eyes.’

⁵But oh, that God would speak, And open His lips against you,

⁶That He would show you the secrets of wisdom! For they would double your prudence. Know therefore that God exacts from you Less than your iniquity deserves.

⁷“Can you search out the deep things of God? Can you find out the limits of the Almighty?

⁸They are higher than heaven— what can you do? Deeper than Sheol— what can you know?

⁹Their measure is longer than the earth And broader than the sea.

¹⁰“If He passes by, imprisons, and gathers to judgment, Then who can hinder Him?

¹¹For He knows deceitful men; He sees wickedness also. Will He not then consider it?

¹²For an empty-headed man will be wise, When a wild donkey’s colt is born a man.

¹³“If you would prepare your heart, And stretch out your hands toward Him;

¹⁴If iniquity were in your hand, and you put it far away, And would not let wickedness dwell in your tents;

¹⁵Then surely you could lift up your face without spot; Yes, you could be steadfast, and not fear;

¹⁶Because you would forget your misery, And remember it as waters that have passed away,

¹⁷And your life would be brighter than noonday. Though you were dark, you would be like the morning.

¹⁸And you would be secure, because there is hope; Yes, you would dig around you, and take your rest in safety.

¹⁹You would also lie down, and no one would make you afraid; Yes, many would court your favor.

²⁰But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And they shall not escape, And their hope—loss of life!”

¹To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. [1] Do not keep silent, O God of my praise!

²For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful Have opened against me; They have spoken against me with a lying tongue.

³They have also surrounded me with words of hatred, And fought against me without a cause.

⁴In return for my love they are my accusers, But I give myself to prayer.

⁵Thus they have rewarded me evil for good, And hatred for my love.

⁶Set a wicked man over him, And let an accuser stand at his right hand.

⁷When he is judged, let him be found guilty, And let his prayer become sin.

⁸Let his days be few, And let another take his office.

⁹Let his children be fatherless, And his wife a widow.

¹⁰Let his children continually be vagabonds, and beg; Let them seek their bread also from their desolate places.

¹¹Let the creditor seize all that he has, And let strangers plunder his labor.

¹²Let there be none to extend mercy to him, Nor let there be any to favor his fatherless children.

¹³Let his posterity be cut off, And in the generation following let their name be blotted out.

¹⁴Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, And let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.

¹⁵Let them be continually before the LORD, That He may cut off the memory of them from the earth;

¹⁶Because he did not remember to show mercy, But persecuted the poor and needy man, That he might even slay the broken in heart.

¹⁷As he loved cursing, so let it come to him; As he did not delight in blessing, so let it be far from him.

¹⁸As he clothed himself with cursing as with his garment, So let it enter his body like water, And like oil into his bones.

¹⁹Let it be to him like the garment which covers him, And for a belt with which he girds himself continually.

²⁰Let this be the LORD’s reward to my accusers, And to those who speak evil against my person.

²¹But You, O GOD the Lord, Deal with me for Your name’s sake; Because Your mercy is good, deliver me.

²²For I am poor and needy, And my heart is wounded within me.

²³I am gone like a shadow when it lengthens; I am shaken off like a locust.

²⁴My knees are weak through fasting, And my flesh is feeble from lack of fatness.

²⁵I also have become a reproach to them; When they look at me, they shake their heads.

²⁶Help me, O LORD my God! Oh, save me according to Your mercy,

²⁷That they may know that this is Your hand— That You, LORD, have done it!

²⁸Let them curse, but You bless; When they arise, let them be ashamed, But let Your servant rejoice.

²⁹Let my accusers be clothed with shame, And let them cover themselves with their own disgrace as with a mantle.

³⁰I will greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; Yes, I will praise Him among the multitude.

³¹For He shall stand at the right hand of the poor, To save him from those who condemn him.

¹Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight.

²When pride comes, then comes shame; But with the humble is wisdom.

³The integrity of the upright will guide them, But the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them.

⁴Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, But righteousness delivers from death.

⁵The righteousness of the blameless will direct his way aright, But the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.

⁶The righteousness of the upright will deliver them, But the unfaithful will be caught by their lust.

⁷When a wicked man dies, his expectation will perish, And the hope of the unjust perishes.

⁸The righteous is delivered from trouble, And it comes to the wicked instead.

⁹The hypocrite with his mouth destroys his neighbor, But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.

¹⁰When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices; And when the wicked perish, there is jubilation.

¹¹By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted, But it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.

¹²He who is devoid of wisdom despises his neighbor, But a man of understanding holds his peace.

¹³A talebearer reveals secrets, But he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter.

¹⁴Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety.

¹⁵He who is surety for a stranger will suffer, But one who hates being surety is secure.

¹⁶A gracious woman retains honor, But ruthless men retain riches.

¹⁷The merciful man does good for his own soul, But he who is cruel troubles his own flesh.

¹⁸The wicked man does deceptive work, But he who sows righteousness will have a sure reward.

¹⁹As righteousness leads to life, So he who pursues evil pursues it to his own death.

²⁰Those who are of a perverse heart are an abomination to the LORD, But the blameless in their ways are His delight.

²¹Though they join forces, the wicked will not go unpunished; But the posterity of the righteous will be delivered.

²²As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout, So is a lovely woman who lacks discretion.

²³The desire of the righteous is only good, But the expectation of the wicked is wrath.

²⁴There is one who scatters, yet increases more; And there is one who withholds more than is right, But it leads to poverty.

²⁵The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be watered himself.

²⁶The people will curse him who withholds grain, But blessing will be on the head of him who sells it.

²⁷He who earnestly seeks good finds favor, But trouble will come to him who seeks evil.

²⁸He who trusts in his riches will fall, But the righteous will flourish like foliage.

²⁹He who troubles his own house will inherit the wind, And the fool will be servant to the wise of heart.

³⁰The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise.

³¹If the righteous will be recompensed on the earth, How much more the ungodly and the sinner.

¹Now it came to pass when Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem heard how Joshua had taken Ai and had utterly destroyed it— as he had done to Jericho and its king, so he had done to Ai and its king—and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were among them,

²that they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all its men were mighty.

³Therefore Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem sent to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish, and Debir king of Eglon, saying,

⁴“Come up to me and help me, that we may attack Gibeon, for it has made peace with Joshua and with the children of Israel.”

⁵Therefore the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon, gathered together and went up, they and all their armies, and camped before Gibeon and made war against it.

⁶And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal, saying, “Do not forsake your servants; come up to us quickly, save us and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the mountains have gathered together against us.”

⁷So Joshua ascended from Gilgal, he and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor.

⁸And the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have delivered them into your hand; not a man of them shall stand before you.”

⁹Joshua therefore came upon them suddenly, having marched all night from Gilgal.

¹⁰So the LORD routed them before Israel, killed them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, chased them along the road that goes to Beth Horon, and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah.

¹¹And it happened, as they fled before Israel and were on the descent of Beth Horon, that the LORD cast down large hailstones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died. There were more who died from the hailstones than the children of Israel killed with the sword.

¹²Then Joshua spoke to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel: “Sun, stand still over Gibeon; And Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.”

¹³So the sun stood still, And the moon stopped, Till the people had revenge Upon their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.

¹⁴And there has been no day like that, before it or after it, that the LORD heeded the voice of a man; for the LORD fought for Israel.

¹⁵Then Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.

¹⁶But these five kings had fled and hidden themselves in a cave at Makkedah.

¹⁷And it was told Joshua, saying, “The five kings have been found hidden in the cave at Makkedah.”

¹⁸So Joshua said, “Roll large stones against the mouth of the cave, and set men by it to guard them.

¹⁹And do not stay there yourselves, but pursue your enemies, and attack their rear guard. Do not allow them to enter their cities, for the LORD your God has delivered them into your hand.”

²⁰Then it happened, while Joshua and the children of Israel made an end of slaying them with a very great slaughter, till they had finished, that those who escaped entered fortified cities.

²¹And all the people returned to the camp, to Joshua at Makkedah, in peace. No one moved his tongue against any of the children of Israel.

²²Then Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave, and bring out those five kings to me from the cave.”

²³And they did so, and brought out those five kings to him from the cave: the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon.

²⁴So it was, when they brought out those kings to Joshua, that Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said to the captains of the men of war who went with him, “Come near, put your feet on the necks of these kings.” And they drew near and put their feet on their necks.

²⁵Then Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; be strong and of good courage, for thus the LORD will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.”

²⁶And afterward Joshua struck them and killed them, and hanged them on five trees; and they were hanging on the trees until evening.

²⁷So it was at the time of the going down of the sun that Joshua commanded, and they took them down from the trees, cast them into the cave where they had been hidden, and laid large stones against the cave’s mouth, which remain until this very day.

²⁸On that day Joshua took Makkedah, and struck it and its king with the edge of the sword. He utterly destroyed them—all the people who were in it. He let none remain. He also did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho.

²⁹Then Joshua passed from Makkedah, and all Israel with him, to Libnah; and they fought against Libnah.

³⁰And the LORD also delivered it and its king into the hand of Israel; he struck it and all the people who were in it with the edge of the sword. He let none remain in it, but did to its king as he had done to the king of Jericho.

³¹Then Joshua passed from Libnah, and all Israel with him, to Lachish; and they encamped against it and fought against it.

³²And the LORD delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel, who took it on the second day, and struck it and all the people who were in it with the edge of the sword, according to all that he had done to Libnah.

³³Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish; and Joshua struck him and his people, until he left him none remaining.

³⁴From Lachish Joshua passed to Eglon, and all Israel with him; and they encamped against it and fought against it.

³⁵They took it on that day and struck it with the edge of the sword; all the people who were in it he utterly destroyed that day, according to all that he had done to Lachish.

³⁶So Joshua went up from Eglon, and all Israel with him, to Hebron; and they fought against it.

³⁷And they took it and struck it with the edge of the sword—its king, all its cities, and all the people who were in it; he left none remaining, according to all that he had done to Eglon, but utterly destroyed it and all the people who were in it.

³⁸Then Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to Debir; and they fought against it.

³⁹And he took it and its king and all its cities; they struck them with the edge of the sword and utterly destroyed all the people who were in it. He left none remaining; as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir and its king, as he had done also to Libnah and its king.

⁴⁰So Joshua conquered all the land: the mountain country and the South and the lowland and the wilderness slopes, and all their kings; he left none remaining, but utterly destroyed all that breathed, as the LORD God of Israel had commanded.

⁴¹And Joshua conquered them from Kadesh Barnea as far as Gaza, and all the country of Goshen, even as far as Gibeon.

⁴²All these kings and their land Joshua took at one time, because the LORD God of Israel fought for Israel.

⁴³Then Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.

¹Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, As when at first He lightly esteemed The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles.

²The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined.

³You have multiplied the nation And increased its joy; They rejoice before You According to the joy of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

⁴For You have broken the yoke of his burden And the staff of his shoulder, The rod of his oppressor, As in the day of Midian.

⁵For every warrior’s sandal from the noisy battle, And garments rolled in blood, Will be used for burning and fuel of fire.

⁶For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

⁷Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

⁸The Lord sent a word against Jacob, And it has fallen on Israel.

⁹All the people will know— Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria— Who say in pride and arrogance of heart:

¹⁰“The bricks have fallen down, But we will rebuild with hewn stones; The sycamores are cut down, But we will replace them with cedars.”

¹¹Therefore the LORD shall set up The adversaries of Rezin against him, And spur his enemies on,

¹²The Syrians before and the Philistines behind; And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still.

¹³For the people do not turn to Him who strikes them, Nor do they seek the LORD of hosts.

¹⁴Therefore the LORD will cut off head and tail from Israel, Palm branch and bulrush in one day.

¹⁵The elder and honorable, he is the head; The prophet who teaches lies, he is the tail.

¹⁶For the leaders of this people cause them to err, And those who are led by them are destroyed.

¹⁷Therefore the Lord will have no joy in their young men, Nor have mercy on their fatherless and widows; For everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer, And every mouth speaks folly. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still.

¹⁸For wickedness burns as the fire; It shall devour the briers and thorns, And kindle in the thickets of the forest; They shall mount up like rising smoke.

¹⁹Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts The land is burned up, And the people shall be as fuel for the fire; No man shall spare his brother.

²⁰And he shall snatch on the right hand And be hungry; He shall devour on the left hand And not be satisfied; Every man shall eat the flesh of his own arm.

²¹Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh; Together they shall be against Judah. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still.

¹Then the high priest said, “Are these things so?”

²And he said, “Brethren and fathers, listen: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran,

³and said to him, ‘Get out of your country and from your relatives, and come to a land that I will show you.’

⁴Then he came out of the land of the Chaldeans and dwelt in Haran. And from there, when his father was dead, He moved him to this land in which you now dwell.

⁵And God gave him no inheritance in it, not even enough to set his foot on. But even when Abraham had no child, He promised to give it to him for a possession, and to his descendants after him.

⁶But God spoke in this way: that his descendants would dwell in a foreign land, and that they would bring them into bondage and oppress them four hundred years.

⁷‘And the nation to whom they will be in bondage I will judge,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and serve Me in this place.’

⁸Then He gave him the covenant of circumcision; and so Abraham begot Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot the twelve patriarchs.

⁹“And the patriarchs, becoming envious, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him

¹⁰and delivered him out of all his troubles, and gave him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house.

¹¹Now a famine and great trouble came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and our fathers found no sustenance.

¹²But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first.

¹³And the second time Joseph was made known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to the Pharaoh.

¹⁴Then Joseph sent and called his father Jacob and all his relatives to him, seventy-five people.

¹⁵So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and our fathers.

¹⁶And they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem.

¹⁷“But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt

¹⁸till another king arose who did not know Joseph.

¹⁹This man dealt treacherously with our people, and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they might not live.

²⁰At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to God; and he was brought up in his father’s house for three months.

²¹But when he was set out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and brought him up as her own son.

²²And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds.

²³“Now when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel.

²⁴And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian.

²⁵For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand.

²⁶And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’

²⁷But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us?

²⁸Do you want to kill me as you did the Egyptian yesterday?’

²⁹Then, at this saying, Moses fled and became a dweller in the land of Midian, where he had two sons.

³⁰“And when forty years had passed, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire in a bush, in the wilderness of Mount Sinai.

³¹When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he drew near to observe, the voice of the Lord came to him,

³²saying, ‘I am the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and dared not look.

³³‘Then the LORD said to him, “Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.

³⁴I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt; I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.” ’

³⁵“This Moses whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’ is the one God sent to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the Angel who appeared to him in the bush.

³⁶He brought them out, after he had shown wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and in the wilderness forty years.

³⁷“This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, ‘The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear.’

³⁸“This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, the one who received the living oracles to give to us,

³⁹whom our fathers would not obey, but rejected. And in their hearts they turned back to Egypt,

⁴⁰saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods to go before us; as for this Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’

⁴¹And they made a calf in those days, offered sacrifices to the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.

⁴²Then God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the Prophets: ‘Did you offer Me slaughtered animals and sacrifices during forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?

⁴³You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch, And the star of your god Remphan, Images which you made to worship; And I will carry you away beyond Babylon.’

⁴⁴“Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed, instructing Moses to make it according to the pattern that he had seen,

⁴⁵which our fathers, having received it in turn, also brought with Joshua into the land possessed by the Gentiles, whom God drove out before the face of our fathers until the days of David,

⁴⁶who found favor before God and asked to find a dwelling for the God of Jacob.

⁴⁷But Solomon built Him a house.

⁴⁸“However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says:

⁴⁹‘Heaven is My throne, And earth is My footstool. What house will you build for Me? says the LORD, Or what is the place of My rest?

⁵⁰Has My hand not made all these things?’

⁵¹“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you.

⁵²Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers,

⁵³who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.”

⁵⁴When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.

⁵⁵But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,

⁵⁶and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”

⁵⁷Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord;

⁵⁸and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.

⁵⁹And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

⁶⁰Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.